Jay, Livermore Falls officials seek help to get hydroelectric plants connected to New England grid

SUN JOURNAL • September 1, 2023

Town officials are asking Maine’s congressional delegation to look into the delay by ISO New England in approving a request to interconnect four hydroelectric plants in Jay, Livermore and Livermore Falls in order to sell electricity to the New England power grid. “Currently, these four hydroelectric dams are not authorized to connect to sell energy to the grid but can only sell energy to the now shuttered mill,” wrote Jay assessing agent Paul Binette. “This issue definitely affects the valuation of the hydro dams if they cannot sell energy. As you can imagine, the town of Jay is currently not in a position to lose any more assessed valuation.”

Editorial: Brunswick-Gardiner interim trail the right way forward

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 1, 2023

The trend of getting out on foot, on wheels or, during the winter, on snowshoes and on skis contributes billions of dollars to Maine’s economy – in fact, we’re in the top five nationally for what the industry does for state GDP. More than that, it’s good for us and it’s good for our environment. Maine has a further chance to capitalize on this rush, now, by creating an off-road multi-use trail along the disused train line corridor, connecting Brunswick, Topsham, Bowdoinham, Richmond and Gardiner. Ultimately, rail transit – done right – makes abundant sense. The corridor can be restored for rail use. As it stands, however, the Department of Transportation has ruled out passenger rail along this particular corridor until 2040. A trail can be put to good use in those years.

Letter: Uplifted by wheelchair passengers along the coast

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 1, 2023

“My heart leaps up when I behold …” a cavalcade of bicycle-powered wheelchairs on a trek to Bug Light. The wheelchair passengers are enjoying sun on their faces, wind blowing their hair and a whooshing sensation as they roll along. The cyclists, the driving force, are skillful, powerful, dedicated, careful and smiling! ~ Charlene Hagen, South Portland

Judge: Trump-era rule change allowing the logging of old-growth forests violates laws

ASSOCIATED PRESS • August 31, 2023

A federal judge has found that a Trump-era rule change that allowed for the logging of old-growth forests in the Pacific Northwest violates several laws. U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew Hallman on Thursday found that the U.S. Forest Service violated the National Environmental Policy Act, the National Forest Management Act and the Endangered Species Act when it amended a protection that had been in place since 1994. The area impacted by the rule is at least 7 million acres on six national forests.

Pro-wind power groups urge Mills to give tribes a place at the table

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 31, 2023

Environmental and labor groups sent a letter to Gov. Janet Mills this week urging her to do more to include the Wabanaki tribes of Maine in offshore wind talks, claiming tribal leaders have “not felt heard or particularly welcome” at state or federal permitting discussions. None of the four Wabanaki tribes signed the open letter, which was sent to Mills on Wednesday, but leaders of the 12 labor and environmental groups that did sign off said they got approval to do it from Wabanaki Alliance staff, a coalition of the four local federally recognized tribes.

Long-planned Cape Elizabeth solar field seeing light of day

FORECASTER • August 31, 2023

Cape Elizabeth’s capped landfill may soon become the source of enough electricity to power over 70% of the town’s municipal and school buildings. Encore, a Vermont-based solar company, could begin construction as soon as October on a solar field at the old landfill adjacent to the transfer station off Spurwink Avenue, near Gull Crest Fields. “It’s an ideal location for a solar installation because you’re not ever going to be able to build on top of it,” Town Manager Matt Sturgis said.

Oil company quietly shelves plan to shrink its carbon footprint

BLOOMBERG • August 31, 2023

Six months after becoming the chief executive at Shell, Wael Sawan quietly ended the world’s biggest corporate plan to develop carbon offsets, the environmental projects designed to counteract the warming effects of CO2 emissions. Sawan laid out an updated strategy for the oil major that included cutting costs and doubling down on profit drivers like oil and gas. He omitted any mention of the company’s prior commitment to spend up to $100 million a year to build a pipeline of carbon credits, part of the firm’s promise to zero out its emissions by 2050. Those goals for the offsets program have been retired, the company confirmed.

State environmental officials assess Litchfield fatal plane crash site for lingering environmental impacts

KENNEBEC JOURNAL • August 31, 2023

As federal transportation investigators continue their work to identify the cause of the fatal plane crash Aug. 22 in Litchfield, state environmental officials are evaluating the impact of spilled aviation fuel at the site. On Wednesday, a member of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection’s Technical Services staff was at the scene of the crash on Oak Hill Road, conducting soil sampling.

Maine wants to expand quarantine zones to stop tree-killing pests

ASSOCIATED PRESS • August 31, 2023

The Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry is holding public hearings Sept. 6 about the plan to expand the quarantine zones for the emerald ash borer, the hemlock woolly adelgid and European larch canker. The quarantine areas place restrictions on the movement of items such as firewood, logs, branches and plants in an attempt to stop the pests from spreading. The spread of the three invasive forest pests poses a threat to the state’s timber industry.

Opinion: This summer’s heat waves ‘virtually impossible’ without climate change

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 31, 2023

The life-threatening heat waves that have baked U.S. southern states and caused scorching European wildfires in recent weeks would be “virtually impossible” without the influence of human-caused climate change, the World Weather Attribution Initiative reported recently. Global warming, they said, also made China’s recent record-setting heat wave 50 times more likely. A new study shows that 94 percent live in the cities where summertime peak heat stress exposure disproportionately burdens the poor. ~ Rev. Richard Killmer, retired Presbyterian minister, Yarmouth; Anders Corey, his grandson, senior at Bates College

Commentary: The pandemic that coronavirus uncovered

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 31, 2023

Summer means more fun outside. But it also means more ticks, and with them greater – and growing – risk of Lyme disease. Over the last decade, Maine has had higher rates of Lyme disease than any other state. Of these, 10-15% may develop post-Lyme or “Long Lyme,” with persistent symptoms, leaving a growing number of patients without the support and help they need. A much-needed effort is underway to define Long COVID, but more effort is needed to define Long Lyme. ~ Bruce Patterson, M.D., CEO, HealthBio Therapeutics

Commentary: Biosolids facility is a stopgap to Maine’s PFAS crisis, not a solution

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 31, 2023

The biosolids facility planned for Norridgewock will help alleviate the immediate concern of biosolids disposal. However, the biosolids disposal crisis is driven primarily by PFAS contamination. We have a biosolids disposal crisis because we have a PFAS crisis. This new facility may buy us a little more time, but it does not solve either problem. When will the state invest in technology to remove PFAS from the cycle? The technology exists to effectively destroy common PFAS compounds and use the waste product of that destruction process to capture more PFAS; small municipal plants cannot afford that. We need investments in these technologies to bring them into Maine, optimize them and make them more affordable and accessible to our communities. ~ Jeanee Dudley, Woodard & Curran consultants and producer of “Disrupting PFAS” podcast about emerging technologies that detect, sequester and destroy PFAS

Letter: To make a difference, belief in climate crisis requires action

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 31, 2023

I know many of us in Maine care about climate change, but simply saying or feeling it isn’t enough. We need to turn our belief and care into action. Reducing emissions in our personal lives is great, but we also need broader change. For that, the best actions we can take are telling our representatives in Congress that addressing climate change is important to us, and to vote for those who will listen and support climate change initiatives. Then keep doing that. It’s not an exaggeration to say that our lives are on the line. Let’s care and act accordingly. ~ Erica Bartlett, Portland

Public will get to weigh in on controversial mining project

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 31, 2023

The Maine Land Use Planning Commission will hold a three-day public hearing on a Canadian junior mining company’s rezoning application for the Pickett Mountain Mining Project, despite objections from intervening parties. The LUPC scheduled public hearings on the Wolfden mining project for Oct. 16, 17 and 18, at Stearns Jr./Sr. High School,199 State St., Millinocket. The proposed mining project is the first real test of Maine’s strict mining law passed in 2017 meant to protect the state’s environment.

Guilford 14-year-old harvests 5th bear

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 31, 2023

Chase Lander, an honor student, has just started his freshman year at Piscataquis Community High School in Guilford. However, the 14-year-old also is able to squeeze in some time for one of his favorite hobbies: hunting. Lander “harvested” his fifth black bear on Youth Bear Hunting Day. This year’s bear, which he shot, weighed 283 pounds. In Maine, hunters are allowed to take two bears per year, one by hunting and one by trapping. Lander, his dad and his mom Kristen are avid bear hunters and they share that passion with a large group of friends who share the baiting workload and costs.

Presque Isle company hired to work on $100M biofuel project

THE COUNTY • August 30, 2023

A Presque Isle firm will design and lead construction on a Louisiana company’s $100 million renewable fuel plant. Delta Biofuel of Jeanerette, Louisiana, has chosen Player Design Inc. to help engineer and supply a facility that will turn sugarcane residue — called bagasse — into fuel pellets that will be used to produce electricity. The Louisiana plant is expected to be the first in North America to use bagasse to create this type of fuel for industry. When complete, Delta’s plant will turn out an estimated 340,000 metric tons of bagasse pellets a year. Maine’s four wood pellet plants produce about 232,000 tons annually.

New MREA executive director will advance the future of renewable energy in Maine and beyond

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 30, 2023

The Maine Renewable Energy Association, a non-profit association for renewable energy producers, suppliers of goods and services to those producers, and other supporters of the renewable energy industry, welcomes Eliza Donoghue as its new executive director. Previously, Donoghue was the director of advocacy and staff attorney for the Maine Audubon, and the forests and wildlife policy advocate and outreach coordinator for the Natural Resources Council of Maine. The Maine Renewable Energy Association is a not-for-profit association of renewable energy producers, suppliers of goods and service to those producers and other supporter of the industry.

Section of Whistle Stop Trail in Jay closed for the year

SUN JOURNAL • August 30, 2023

A section of the Whistle Stop Trail between Steve’s Family Market in Wilton and the McDonald’s restaurant in Jay Plaza will most likely remain closed for the rest of the year, Brian Bronson, supervisor of the state’s Off Road Recreational Vehicle Program, said Wednesday. The section, which is owned by the state, was heavily damaged by a flash flood June 29. It’s estimated to cost about $860,000 to fix it.